Outside Focus
Artists
Press Release
Cos Cob, CT, September 2014--The Drawing Room Art Gallery is pleased to announce its first exhibition dedicated exclusively to photography, Outside Focus, which runs September 20- November 8, 2014. The Drawing Room invites the greater public to attend the Opening Reception and meet the artists on Saturday, September 20, from 6-8 pm. This event is free and open to the public. The Drawing Room is located at 220 East Putnam Avenue, Cos Cob, CT.
Outside Focus highlights the work of five photographers and brings together images that capture stunning and surprising views of natural and man-made land formations, patterns and scenes from around the world, including locations such as Iceland, Yunnan, China, Wahoo, Nebraska and Hudson Valley, NY to name just a few. The exhibition will feature photographs by Jeff Becker (Easton, CT), David Burdeny (Vancouver, British Columbia), John Griebsch (Rochester, NY), Laura McClanahan (Glen Gardner, NJ) and Torrance York (New Canaan, CT). The exhibition will feature roughly 35 photographic prints, ranging in size from 11x17 to 40x40.
Using his inkjet print as a paintbrush, Jeff Becker creates watercolor-like photographs without the use of Photoshop or filters. Rejecting the notion of traditional photography, Becker’s “Slurry” Series shows what it means to have a photograph that is no longer static, but rather moving and evolving over the course of time. These photographs make their way beyond the boundaries of photography, inching closer to painting, where images drip almost literally off the page.
David Burdeny’s dream-like images cause the viewer to feel as if they are floating over the landscape. Focusing on light, and specifically moments in the early morning and dusk, Burdeny uses unusually long exposures to see that which our eyes cannot. His “Saudade” series on exhibit is named after a Portuguese word, referring to a longing desire for what was or what could be- a desire to be someplace anywhere but the present. Burdeny’s startling images provide a perspective of particular landscapes that which we rarely see- so rare, that at first sight they border on belief and disbelief. Describing each of his images as a “survey of terrestrial phenomenon and the traces we as humans leave behind”, Burdeny travels across the globe to capture images which are both stunning and amazing, asking the question, “How do you, as human beings experience the earth?”
The aerial photographs by John Griebsch are captured from his trips across the continent, flying his vintage 1952 Cessna 170B. His images of the American landscape take on the qualities of large abstract paintings, with colorful flattened shapes and patterns stretching across the picture plane. In this current series of work titled, “Aerias”, images of the landscape and agriculture denote changes in the scale of farming and open space. A photograph looking straight down on tracks made by a motorcycle in snow appear as a highly graphic drawing. Balancing abstraction and realism, Griebsch’s work provides viewers with spectacular views from the perception of a pilot.
When looking at Laura McClanahan’s work, one is faced with beautiful and complex images that feel both familiar and unfamiliar. Known for her abstract photography, McClanahan’s “Branching Rivers” series are made from aerial photographs of living rivers. Showing the natural patterns of growth that change over time these images provide visual connections to the branching systems of trees, lungs and veins. River drainage patterns become metaphors for human lives and how humans adapt and change over time. Her work calls into question how we as humans evolve and even avoid situations to eventually change us as beings.
The landscape photographs by Torrance York are culled from three of her major projects, all of which were photographed primarily in either Connecticut or New York. Photographed with a shallow depth of field on ground level, the viewer is made to feel as if he or she is lying in the middle of the
road with their chin pressed onto the asphalt, or hiding on the dirt floor of a cornfield. The landscape feels vast while creating an incredibly intimate moment in time from a specific vantage point. In each of these series, she collects the Global Positioning System coordinates of the exact point from which the shot was taken. Collecting the GPS data to literally track her own steps, she thus records her physical experience with precision while reflecting upon an infinite number of views from that single point. While these images can be identified by her position in relation to the environment she is photographing, they feel highly sensory -driven and exceptionally poignant.
Planned in conjunction with this exciting photography exhibit will be Artist Talks given by Laura McClanahan and Torrance York on Thursday, Oct. 2 at 6pm and The Artist’s Table dinner on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 5pm. The Drawing Room Art Gallery is open Monday- Saturday, 10am-5pm and is closed on Sundays. For more information about this exhibit and The Drawing Room Art Gallery’s upcoming events, visit www.thedrawingroom.cc or contact The Drawing Room directly at (203) 661-3737 or email at info@thedrawingroom.cc